Friday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial of Saint Cajetan, Priest
Optional Memorial of Saint Sixtus II, Pope and Martyr, and his Companions, Martyrs
In De Civitate Dei, St. Augustine developed Christ’s heroic humility not only by using kenosis but also through the theology of the cross. Through the concept of Incarnation, Christ is likened to the humble hero who descended into humanity to counteract the Roman heroes’ pride and glory. As a humble hero, Christ took the cross to Calvary, where he eventually died. His heroic death on the cross is the completion of the heroic kenosis that is first revealed in the Word becoming flesh. On the cross, Christ shows heroic humility in the most explicit possible terms. In the humiliation of his Passion, Christ rejects all of the forms of earthly glory.
The Gospel reading today is about the prophecy of the crucifixion. In the Gospel, Jesus does three things: first, he foretells the passion; second, he convicts a disciple by rebuking Peter; third, and finally, he teaches the faith, as Jesus provided many profound messages to His disciples. First, why did Jesus need to tell the disciples about the coming of His passion? One plausible reason is that He had manifested himself to the apostles. If He had foretold the passion before faith was well established in them, perhaps they would have abandoned him; but now they believed that He was the true God, so the disciples were ready to embrace the fact that Jesus would undergo the Passion. Second, Jesus rebuked Peter because the devil, seeing that Jesus had announced His passion, incited Peter to advise against it. So, Jesus immediately rebuked Peter because he did not speak on his own initiative, but rather on the devil’s instigation. Finally, Jesus taught His disciples that they should pick up the cross and follow Him. The bottom line is that the disciples must be prepared to suffer the cross, or to die a most bitter and shameful death like Jesus. Moreover, all followers of Christ should be prepared to suffer any trial and tribulation whatever for God’s sake.